Reunion
by redroosterdawn
Summary: Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.
1. Chapter 1

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part one

Thursday

2 May 2002

It was a warm and sunny spring day. Mac didn't have any cases that needed her attention that afternoon. She wanted to go somewhere and take a long lunch. She wondered if Harm had anything scheduled for that afternoon. She took a walk over to his office to see if he wanted to join her for lunch.

Harm had just returned from court and placed his briefcase on his desk. He looked like he needed a break. He must have had a rough morning in court she thought. Hopefully he didn't have court that afternoon.

"What are you doing for lunch Harm?" Mac asked sweetly.

Harm could sense that she wanted to go out to lunch somewhere. She had a twinkle in her eye and her hands were behind her back while she was swaying a little impatiently. And then there was that coy seductive smile she always gave him whenever she wanted something.

"Nothing that I'm aware of Mac. I'm not due back in court this afternoon. What do you suggest?" he replied noticing that the smile on her face grew larger.

"It's a beautiful day outside. Why don't we pick up some take out from Ho's Chinese and go to the mall and picnic on the lawn." she replied. She was sure the mention of Chinese food would entice him.

"Sounds like a good idea Mac. Let's go." he replied.

The Mall

Twenty minutes later they found a spot near the pond. They spread out their lunch on a blanket between them and began to eat. They had been eating for awhile and enjoying the view when a stranger came up to them.

His name was Ben Johnson and he was in Washington DC on a business trip. He sold widgets to the government. He was hoping to extend the contract another three years. He was taking a walk around the mall when he saw what he thought was a familiar face from his distant past.

At least he thought he knew her. She was dressed in a military uniform, marines he thought. She was still a very beautiful woman even if her hair was much shorter these days. He decided to walk over to her and say hello to her.

"Excuse me, I happened to notice that your nametag says MacKenzie. You look like someone I knew a long time ago. Your name wouldn't be by any chance Sarah MacKenzie who attended Indian Ridge high school outside Phoenix, Arizona?" asked Ben.

"Yes I am, how do you know that?" asked Mac.

"My name is Ben Johnson. I went to high school with you almost twenty years ago." replied Ben.

"Ben Johnson ....." Mac though back to another time that was not so pleasant in her life.

"You were a band geek weren't you?" she said causing Harm to chuckle. Ben looked like the average guy who had a crush on the prom queen, but was too afraid to say a word to her back then. And when he finally did his ego would be stomped into the ground.

"Well, I was in the band, but I hardly considered myself a geek. I just happened to like playing music and the band was all we had back then." he struggled to regain his composure. Sarah was even more beautiful than he remembered.

"Must be seventeen years now I reckon."

"I believe so. How are you doing Ben?" smiled Mac. Might as well be polite to him. Maybe he might tell her something about one of her old friends.

"Good, good. I'm here in DC on business. I see you're in the military like your father was." replied Ben.

"Yes, I'm in the Marine Corp. I'm a lawyer in the JAG corp. I'm stationed right here in Washington at JAG Headquarters. This is Commander Harmon Rabb. He's my partner at JAG." replied Mac as she introduced Harm who stood up to shake Ben's hand.

"Good to meet you Ben. Mac doesn't talk too much about her high school days. Not too many pleasant memories for her." said Harm.

"I'm really surprised to hear that. She was the most popular girl in high school. All the guys wanted to date her and all the girls wanted to be like her." smiled Ben at the revelation.

"You're exaggerating Ben. No one wanted to be like me. I barely survived high school." argued Mac.

"We have a reunion coming up in three weeks Sarah. It would be nice if you could attend. So many people would love to see you again." informed Ben.

"I doubt that very much Ben. I don't think there's anyone who misses me." argued Mac.

"Sarah, we all had our problems in high school. We all thought ours were the worse. A third of the class had parents that were divorce and another twenty percent that wished their parents were. Sarah, I'm sure you're not the same person you were in high school.

Very few of us are. There are some people who didn't say two words to me during high school who are my best friends now. People grow, they become better people. They all want the same thing out of life.

Here's my card Sarah. I hope you decide to come. I think you will find there are a lot of people who miss you and wished that you were still in their lives." countered Ben. He gave Harm one of his cards too hoping that he could convince her to come.

"I don't know Ben. I've left my past behind me a long time ago. It's something I don't think about anymore." replied said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. While Harm could understand why Mac didn't want to revisit her past, he thought it was something she needed to do if she was ever going to completely heal. She had come a long way after her father's death and seeing her mother again after so many years had help."I think you should go Mac." said Harm.

"Harm!" cried Mac. She wondered why he was doing this to her.

"Mac, you need this to complete the healing process. You've been able to put to rest most of the pain you suffered with your father. You have a relationship with your mother now.

Wouldn't it be nice to see your old friends again, the ones who helped you get through high school after your mother left. Maybe it will change the way you view your life then." pleaded Harm.

"Would you go with me?" asked Mac.

"If the Admiral will let me. You know I will always be there for you." he replied.

Harm conducted some maneuvers over the next few days. He had called Ben to tell him that Mac was amicable to going to their reunion. Ben asked Harm if he had any pictures of Sarah and any information they could use to celebrate Sarah's return.

They wanted to honor her Military Service to their country. Harm told Ben that he would have Sarah bring along several photo albums with her and he could have the choice of any picture he wanted.

Ben was pleased to hear that Sarah was going to attend. He called his wife Tammy to let her know that he had found the infamous Sarah Mackenzie and that she would be coming back to town and would attend the reunion. He told her his plan of honoring her as an American hero.

As the day drew near that Mac would be returning to her hometown, she became very anxious about it and was wavering about making the trip. It was only with Harm's assurance that everything would be alright and that he would be there with her that helped her to relax.

"I don't understand why you want me to bring my photo albums with me Harm." sighed Mac.

"I would think you would want to share with your friends what your life has been like since you left home seventeen years ago. They will want to know. They will probably show you pictures of their lives. You will have them in case you do." smiled Harm. He left out mentioning showing pictures of their families.

"I guess you're right. There's a reason why I have so many. I am very proud of my life." replied Mac.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part two

Friday

24 May

Arizona

A few weeks later Harm accompanied Mac to Arizona for her high school reunion. They were met at the airport by Ben who took them back to his house. All the better hotels had been filled up by those returning for the reunion, especially after learning that Sarah was going to be there.

"I hope you don't mind staying with us Sarah. As you know there aren't too many hotel rooms in town. With everyone returning to town for the reunion all the rooms are filled up." smiled Ben. He was happy that Sarah decided to come back for the reunion afterall.

"Are you sure your wife won't mind Ben? What about your kids, won't they mind?" asked Mac a little unsure if she had done the right thing in coming.

"The kids are spending the weekend with their friends. They're very happy about that. It was my wife's idea that you should stay with us." smiled Ben.

Twenty minutes later they arrived at Ben's house. It was a large eight room sprawling ranch with three bedrooms. It was a reasonably new house, built only twelve years ago. Ben led them to the front door where they were greeted by his wife.

"Sarah! You're here! I can't believe it. You've finally come back home to us!" exclaimed Tammy as she gave Mac a big hug.

"Tammy! You married a band geek! I thought you had better taste than that." replied Mac happily as she saw one of her best friends from high school standing there. A warm feeling filled her heart.

"We ended up going to the same college. We began hanging out together while we were there and then started dating. We got married ten years ago. we have a boy who is eight and a little girl who is five." explained Tammy.

"You look even more beautiful than you did in high school Sarah. However did you manage that and who is your friend?" asked Tammy with a seductive smile.

"Thank you Tammy. I workout a lot and run five miles a day. This Harmon Rabb Jr. He's a commander in the Navy. We work together at JAG Headquarters." smiled Mac.

"We're lawyers. I don't think too many people know that JAG is the Justice system in the military. Sarah is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Marine Corp." added Harm.

"Ben didn't tell me that. All he said was that he met you in Washington while he was on business. He said that he somehow convinced you into coming to the reunion." observed Tammy.

"It's such a beautiful day to stay inside dear, I think we should go outside and spend it in the backyard." directed Ben as he guided his wife out the door where their friends were waiting.

Ben and Tammy led Harm and Mac outside. Mac was surprised to see so many people in the backyard. Many of them were friends she hadn't seen in seventeen years.

Mac took a look at all the people standing in the background. She began to recognized the different people in the yard. They were girls that she had played softball, basketball, and volleyball with.

There were girls from her honors classes. She walked down the steps to greet them all. They shared hugs and platitudes. They told her about their families. Mac was beginning to realized that she had more friends during her high school years than she had remembered.

She began to realize that her life back then wasn't as bad as she remembered. She walked down the steps of the porch to greet her friends. Harm hung back out of the way to observe Mac in a place where he had never seen her, a place surrounded by her friends.

They were friends who loved her. He didn't want to get in the way of their reunion. He didn't want to take away from her moment in the sun.

"Did you bring any pictures of her Harm?" asked Ben.

"She brought three or four albums with her Ben. I'm sure you'll be able to find something you like." smile Harm.

"Thanks, I can scan the pictures into the computer later, then enlarge them, and then print out. What kind of pictures does she have?" asked Ben.

"You name it Ben she has it. There are enough photos to fill seven or eight albums. People are always taking pictures of us together and then giving us a copy. There are so many different kinds. You'll have to look through them and decide what you like best." replied Harm.

"Harm! Can you bring me the albums please!" ordered Mac.

Harm looked at Mac. She had a smile on her face that was as large as he had ever seen. She was glowing. He had never seen her so happy. She was in her element. He noticed that one of the husbands was filming the gathering of Mac and her friends. He was going to have to have a talk with him and get a copy made.

Harm went into the house and retrieved her bag that was filled with photo albums and brought it out to her. All her friends whistled their delight at seeing him and cooed their secret desires.

"Ladies, this is Harmon Rabb Jr. He's my partner and best friend at JAG." introduced Mac.

"He's gorgeous Sarah!" cried Cindy.

"You make a good looking couple Sarah." remarked Annabelle.

"Thank you. I have some albums I would like to share with all of you. They cover the last six years of my life." smiled Mac. She was so happy to see so many friends that she had forgotten she had.

They spent the next several hours looking through her albums and talking. There were so many pictures that it seemed each album had at least two hundred pictures in it. There were many candid pictures, some with Harm and Mac together and some were pictures of them by themselves.

They particularly liked some pictures of Mac in her different uniforms. It amazed them that Mac could look so good in the various uniforms. Their favorite was her in her BDU's wearing her floppy hat.

But they were really impressed when they saw Sarah in all her marvelous evening gowns. There were so many of them and they all seemed to be a different color and shade.

"You look so beautiful Sarah in these pictures. It seems like you're wearing a different gown in each of these pictures. Just how many gowns do you have?" asked Annie.

"I've lost count. There are too many to keep in my closet. I had to rent some space in Harm's building to store them all. But if I had to guess I would say somewhere between forty and forty five gowns." replied Mac to their amazement.

"Wow! How come you have so many gowns? How can you afford it?" asked Betty wishing that she had a few more than she did.

"I'm a lawyer, I make a pretty good living. Also, I don't have any children. It's my understanding that it costs a lot of money to raise them and save for their future. As to why I have so many gowns, Harm and I go to at least twelve to fifteen formal social events a year in Washington.

They seem to like having military officers at these function, it adds to the prestige of the event. Besides we are well connected in Washington. We know a lot of important people whom we've done favors for.

Sometimes we attend as many as five social functions in a very short period of time, especially around the holidays. As you all know it would be a major faux pas to be seen in the same gown in such a short period.

You are right about one thing Angela, every gown is a different color and has its own matching pair of shoes. I think you all can see the color red is my favorite color." smiled Mac. She was so happy to be sharing a part of her life with her friends.

"That reminds me of an interesting story going back to our first year working together. I noticed that Sarah was happier than normal. She had been dating Clowne, a partner at a prestigious law firm. I asked her what made women happy.

She told me a good man, a good career, and lots and lots of shoes." began Harm. Most of the women in the crowd shouted their agreement to that assessment.

"Shoes! I want more shoes!" they all shouted causing Harm and the other men there to laugh.

"She said two out of three wasn't bad. I mentioned Clowne." smiled Harm.

"His name was Dalton Lowne, not clown. You know that Harmon." correct Mac.

"I said no way, have you seen the size of his feet." smiled Mac.

Everyone laughed as Harm held his hands two feet apart to show them how big Lowne's feet were as in a clown's feet.

"Then somehow the conversation led to what I was expecting when the Admiral told me I would be getting a marine for a partner. I had thoughts of a short, stubby, arm wrestling jarhead with a tattoo.

Sarah gave me one of her sweet seductive smiles and said that she liked to arm wrestle, she had a tattoo, and technically she was a jarhead although she didn't like the term." smiled Harm.

All the ladies were engrossed with the story. Harm and Mac seemed to have something special between them. They had so many amazing stories to share.

"He gave me a look that scared me as I realized I must have said something out loud that I shouldn't have said. He was looking me up and down as though I was prize side of beef.

He was looking for something, but he didn't say anything. I said What? He asked me why he hadn't seen the tattoo before and where was it." smiled Mac.

"I still haven't seen it." pouted Harm as though he was hurt feigning injury.

"Are you talking about the one you got when you were sixteen or was it when you were eighteen on your ..... " offered Becky before Mac interrupted her.

"Becky!" chastised Mac before Becky could reveal the location of her tattoos. Harm was surprised to hear that Mac had more than one.


	3. Chapter 3

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part three

The ladies saw the looks that were shared between Harm and Mac causing them all to sigh as they recognized two people deeply in love.

"Sarah, can you tell us what you have been doing since you left high school. None of us saw you after the graduation party." pleaded Connie.

"Can you tell us something about Harm and how you met him?" asked Debbie.

"I think some of you remembered that I used to hang out with a boy named Eddie. There were many night we spent drinking so I could avoid being at home with my abusive father. As many of you did after graduation we partied long into the night.

What some of you might not have known we got into his car. He was driving too fast and crashed. He died. I was thrown from the car and hit the pavement. I was in the hospital for two weeks before my uncle got me and took me to Red Rock Mesa to dry out.

We stayed there for the rest of the summer before I went to college. After college I joined the marines and became an officer. My first duty station was in Japan where I was the Public Affairs Officer.

I handled disputes between the Navy and the local population. I learned to speak Japanese while I was stationed there. I already knew how to speak French, Spanish, German, Russian, and Farsi. After Japan I went to Duke Law School and received a law degree. I spent the next two years in Bosnia and another year in Los Angeles.

Then six years ago I came to Washington. Harm was receiving a medal from the President for saving the CAG's life after not flying for more than five years. I had arrived late so I was waiting for him and the Admiral in the White House Rose Garden.

I have never seen a more beautiful place on earth. There were so many different kinds of roses of different sizes, textures, and colors. The aroma from all the roses was intoxicating.

I heard some footsteps coming my way so I turned around and saw the most gorgeous man in dress whites and gold wings shining on his chest. He stopped in front of me and gazed deeply into my eyes as if he was searching for my damaged soul.

I offered him my hand, but he continued to look deeply into my eyes. When the Admiral asked if we knew each other, he said yes as I said no. I was confused because I had never met Harm before." recounted Mac.

"Sarah looked liked a girl I went to the Academy with named Diane. A few months before I met Sarah I was scheduled to meet with her. We were going away for a week to talk about our future, whether or not we would get married.

Unfortunately she was killed the night before we were to meet. When I saw Sarah I thought I was seeing Diane again, but Sarah was wearing a marine uniform, not a naval uniform. I knew I needed to get to know her." added Harm.

"We've spent most of the last six years traveling the world together seeking truth, justice, and the American way." smiled Mac.

"That's a wonderful story Sarah." sighed Trudy.

"Can you tell us about one of your adventures Sarah?" asked Veronica.

"Last year about this time we spent a few months in Afghanistan. We went there for a Tribunal to tried an Al Qaeda leader. He was very arrogant. Harm got him to confess to what he had done. He thought he could tell us his plans and we wouldn't be able to stop him.

He was found guilty and committed suicide. We found out from a CIA agent that Al Qaeda had spent two hundred million dollars to buy an old Russian submarine.

On the way back to Afghanistan the terrorist met up with some Chechen rebels and bought some dirty radioactive material that had stolen from a Russian nuclear waste disposal yard. We almost caught him in a bombing raid, but he managed to escape with the radioactive material.

He had an Afghan family transport the radioactive material to western Afghanistan. We drove across Afghanistan to find that the family had died from radiation exposure." recounted Mac.

"You left out some of the interesting parts of the story Sarah. We went for a ride to question some of the villagers who might have information about the terrorist and you took your eyes off the road." interrupted Harm.

"What happened Sarah?" asked Robin. Why would she take her eyes off the road.

"I was looking at Harm. He looked so good sitting there. He had a very contented look on his face. I said to him you like it here, it's man country. He just gave me one of his wonderful smiles that caused my heart to flutter.

Next thing I know he's yelling at me to look out for the goats. I was wondering why he wanted me to look for goats when I turned my head and saw a herd of them in the middle of the road. I swerved to missed them." smiled Mac.

"And drove into a minefield blowing out the tires of the jeep. I was tossed out of the jeep into the middle of the minefield. I stepped on a mine as I tried to walk out. I was lucky not to have been killed." whined Harm.

"I got you out didn't I? We started walking until it got dark. I laid out our stuff for the night." continued Mac.

"Yeah, she put a divider in between us. I told her it gets cold at night in the desert. We should share body heat." said Harm as he winked to the ladies.

"I asked her if I should call down to the front desk. She made me beg her to join me. She did give me one of her most beautiful smiles before saying yes."

"That sounds so wonderful." sighed Nancy. The thought of spending a night alone in the desert with a handsome man was enticing.

"It was for fifteen minutes. Just as I was getting comfortable in his arms we were caught in a bombing run and were almost killed." replied Mac as she saw her friends totally invested in the story.

"That's awful." moaned Nancy wondering how they managed to escape.

"Yeah, it's been over a year now and he still hasn't let me drive since. We use to share in the driving before then." pouted Mac. "It's not like I don't know how to drive, I drive a corvette."

"You drive a corvette Sarah? I thought you said anyone who drove a corvette was a pompous ass?" asked Abigail smiling.

"You said driving a jeep was the only way for a real person to travel." smiled Betty.

"Harm drove a corvette." smiled Mac hearing the sighs from all her friends. "It was stolen from him a couple years ago. He asked me to go with him to pick out a new car.

I mentioned that he should take his girlfriend Jordan with him to pick out a new car. He said that if you took your girlfriend with you to buy a car then you should probably marry them." drawing more than a few "Oohs!" from the ladies.

"What?" replied Harm as he winked to several of the ladies.

"You asked Sarah, your lady friend to go car shopping with you. You don't have to be Freud to know that you wanted Sarah to be your wife." replied Cindy.

"So not true ladies, she was my best friend. We used to spend sixteen hours a day together. You learn to trust each other's opinions and insights on matters." replied Harm with a sly smile.

"That was when I drove a corvette for the first time. It was like 'Wow!' What a driving experience! So I traded in my jeep and bought it." chuckled Mac.

The ladies were looking through the photo album hoping to see Sarah with her corvette. They came across one with Sarah dressed in a black evening gown leaning against her red corvette convertible.

"Sarah, did you do some modeling?" asked Beth.

"No, why?" asked Mac."There is a photo here with you wearing an evening gown leaning against a corvette convertible." replied Beth.

Mac had to take a moment to reflect on the photo. What photo was Beth referring to? Then she remembered Harm took the picture a few weeks after she bought the car. They were going to a formal fourth of July party.

"Harm took that photo. He wanted to show me I looked better driving a corvette than a jeep." smiled Mac.

"That's not exactly true Sarah. I showed that picture to Mr. Edwards, the dealer. He wanted you to pose in front of a few more corvettes. He took ten thousand off the sticker price." smiled Harm.

"He told me that he sold more corvettes in the next six months than he had sold in the last five years. He wrote off six months worth of payments." smile Mac.

"That's not hard to believe Sarah. You look so beautiful in that gown." wailed Cassie.

"So what happened in Afghanistan?" asked Mary. She wasn't really interested in hearing about Sarah's corvette or how beautiful she was. They all knew how special Sarah was since they were together in high school.

"A couple of days later we found out the terrorist we were tracking had been seen driving to western Afghanistan. Harm did all the driving. He drove through the night. At one point we had rival gangs shooting at us as we drove through.

We found the truck, but the terrorist wasn't there, only the driver and his family. They had died from radiation sickness. We notified the Captain of the Fleet about the missing radioactive material.

When we got back on board the aircraft carrier the captain assigned Harm to fly a sortie looking for the missing sub that was reported to have a dirty nuke on board. Harm used to be a fighter pilot in his younger days.

He was the best pilot and still holds the record for shooting down missiles. On this sortie he was supposed to shoot down the missile before it reached ten miles of the fleet. Unfortunately they didn't locate the missile until it was too close to the fleet." Mac continued on with the story.

"Harm is a pilot?" asked Heather.

"I fly tomcats in my spare time." beamed Harm giving the ladies one of his special flyboy smiles.

"So you got yourself a pilot after all Sarah." teased Tammy.

"What's that?" asked Harm as his ears perked up. He was surprised to hear that Sarah wanted to marry a pilot.

"It was all she ever talked about when we were growing up. She was going to find herself a fighter pilot and marry him. He would take her away from her father and they would see the world together." said Tammy.

"I managed to get away from my father just fine all by myself thank you very much." countered Mac.

"I knew it! You are a sucker for dress whites and gold wings." exclaimed Harm smugly.

"Now you've done it Tammy. His oversized ego just doubled in size. There will be no living with him now. It's bad enough that it has been well documented that he is the best pilot to have ever flown in the Navy, but did you have to stroke his ego." moaned Mac.

"As for dress whites and gold wings, they are highly overrated. I just happened to like the man who was wearing them. I actually prefer Harm in his blues. He look more distinguish.

It isn't easy finding a good looking man tall enough so that I can wear my four inch heels. Most men don't like a woman who is taller than they are. I like to be able to look up at a man or lie my head on his chest when I'm dancing with him." explained Mac.


	4. Chapter 4

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part four

"That's all very interesting Sarah, but what happened to the missile? Did Harm shoot it down?" asked Debbie.

"What happened to the sub?" asked Eliza. Surely they wouldn't have let the sub get away.

"The sub was destroyed seconds after it launched the missile by one of our subs chasing it." replied Mac

"As for the missile, it was too close to the fleet when Harm located it. If he shot it down then the radioactive fallout would have come down on fleet causing first illness and then death to all on board.

It was then that Harm decided to play tag with the missile. He flew in front of the missile so that it would lock onto his tomcat. Harm then led the missile safely away from the fleet so that it would fall harmlessly into the ocean.

He was a hero that day. He saved the lives of over fifteen thousands men and women that day including mine." concluded Mac.

"Wow! You were almost killed four times in less than a week!" exclaimed Ginger.

"Have you ever flown in a jet Sarah?" asked Karen.

It seemed like a reasonable question considering that Harm was a pilot and Sarah was obviously in love with him. He did say that they spent sixteen hours a day together.

"A couple of times. The first time I almost passed out. I felt so sick. It was so nauseating. The second time was when we were in Russia to look for his dad. We stole a MIG, but we were shot down before we went too far. My stomach was doing somersaults the whole time." moaned Mac.

"I didn't have any weapons to fight back with. If I had, they would have been the ones ejecting." explained Harm.

"That's an amazing story. You must have lots of stories to tell Sarah. How many adventures have you been on Sarah?" asked Laura.

"Most of them aren't very interesting. We have traveled all over the world and visited many places. It's really sad to see how many of them live and how the people are mistreated by their own governments. We're very lucky to live here in America." sighed Mac.

Everyone spent the rest of the afternoon talking and renewing acquaintances. Harm and Ben shared barbequing duties. Tammy and Amy brought out several different kinds of salads; potato, pasta, and the standard kind.

Earlier Ben had set up several coolers filled with beer and tonic. There was also a choice of dips, chips, and pickles to munch on.

"Thank you Harm for convincing Sarah to come back this year for the reunion. As you can see everyone here loves her and wanted to see her very much. It gave many of them a reason to attend the reunion themselves. She was a special person in our lives." remarked Ben.

"I wasn't sure I believed everything you said Ben. Sarah has told me more than a few times that high school wasn't a very pleasant experience for her. I guess her relationship with her father and that her mother left probably tainted her view.

I can see that she had more friends than she thought she had and as you said they care for her very much." replied Harm.

"Tammy mentioned to me that she heard that Sarah's dad died a few years ago." commented Ben.

"Yeah, it was three years ago. It was a very emotional experience for her. She came to terms with her father and she saw her mother for the first time in seventeen years. Coming here today will finally take all the hurt and emotional pain away from her." sighed Harm.

The party began to thin out after 2000 hours as many of them had to get home to their kids. It wasn't long until only Ben and Tammy were alone with Harm and Mac. Ben informed Harm of the different activities that were planned for tomorrow.

"Sarah, I have never seen someone with so many different hairstyles. I must have counted at least ten different ones. I think most of us are lucky if we try one or two different ones." declared Robin.

"I used to be that way until about eight years ago, but I got tired of putting my hair up in a bun every morning. It didn't do much for my hair either. So one day I had it cut. At first I tried to keep it longer by curling the ends.

There's so much more you can do with your hair when it's longer. After a while I studied the fashion magazines and found many attractive hair styles. I chose the different styles that I liked. Though one year my stylist cut it way too short. I didn't go back to him." explained Mac.

"I wish I could show my sisters these pictures. They haven't changed their hairstyle in over ten years. All they do is have their hair trimmed a few inches three or four times a year." wailed Heather.

"I hate to tell you, but that's all I would do if I didn't have to put my hair up in a bun every morning. I liked wearing my hair long. It's the only thing I don't like about being in the military." countered Mac.

Saturday

Mac spent the next day showing Harm around the town she grew up in. There wasn't much of note to see, only a few strip malls and churches along with the schools. There was little commercial development as the town was mostly residential.

While Mac was showing Harm around town Ben took advantage with some assistance from Tammy to scan an assortment of Mac's pictures into his computer to enlarge them for the reunion. He tried his best to get a cross section of her life.

Many of the pictures had Harm in them. There were many pictures of Mac in the different uniforms she wore. There were pictures of her friends from JAG in relaxed social gatherings. And then there was Mac as the belle of the ball at the many formal social functions she attended.

He printed them out on nine by twelve inch photo quality paper ad took them over to the reunion hall. He gave the pictures to Victoria and Heather who were in charge of the poster honoring Sarah MacKenzie.

They were honoring Sarah tonight. She was an American hero who had been away for a very long time. They wanted to show her that her service to their country was appreciated, that she was remembered, and loved by all.

"Where did you get these pictures Ben? They're all so beautiful." asked Victoria."I got them from her collection of photo albums." replied Ben.

"She's here Ben? You've actually seen her?" asked Heather.

"I picked her up at the airport yesterday. We had a little party for her to welcome her home." replied Ben.

"And you didn't invite us?" pouted Heather.

"She almost didn't come. She doesn't think anybody care about her. Tammy and I wanted to show her that she made an impression on a lot of people. Most of the people there were her teammates on the different teams she played on and a few others who were her very close friends." replied Ben trying to reassure her.

"Does she still look as good as she does in the pictures and who is this man with her?" asked Victoria licking her chops.

"His name is Harmon Rabb. He's in the Navy. They work together, but I think that there is more between them than they're letting on. She looks like she is in good shape. She looks pretty small when she stands next to Harm, but she really isn't. Harm is a very tall and physically imposing person." smiled Ben

1900 hours

Ben's house

It was time to go. Mac had convinced Harm to wear his dress whites for the occasion. She loved the way he looked in them. It would also answer a few questions before they were asked and allow her friends a topic in which to talk to Harm about.

Mac, herself, was wearing a maroon colored gown that came down to just above the knee. It hugged her body like a glove. Tammy and Ben were taken aback a little when they saw her.

Sure, they had seen the pictures of her in her gowns and they had seen her yesterday dress very casually. While she looked very nice she didn't look that special. She looked rather small and skinny standing next to Harm.

But tonight she looked unbelievably beautiful with so many curves in all the right places. Harm came along to stand right behind her making her look even more beautiful against Harm's dress whites.

"You look so beautiful Sarah. I can't remember a day I looked half as good as you do." wailed Tammy.

"Thank you Tammy. I work very hard to stay in shape. Buying a dress like this is my reward. What time does the reunion start?" asked Mac.

"They should start arriving at the hall around seven o'clock. Dinner starts about eight thirty. What?" asked Tammy a bit confuse.

"Sarah doesn't like to be late for anything. She very discipline and punctual." replied Harm.

"It's only five minutes to the hall, but tonight is a special night. Sarah has return home. She an American hero. We want to give everyone a chance to be there to welcome her home." offered Ben.

"I'm only a lawyer Ben, I'm not a hero. Besides I don't think that many people care if I'm here or not. I wasn't anyone special when I was here in high school." countered Mac.

She really didn't want the unwanted attention. She had seen the people she wanted to see yesterday.

"You were to us Sarah, we're your friends. You saw how many people were here yesterday. They are your friends, they care about you Sarah. It was why they were all here. You made a big impression on a lot of people in high school." argued Tammy.

"That's Sarah for you. She's very humble about her achievements. When she received the highest honor that a marine can receive she didn't want a large ceremony or any special recognition.

She believed that she was only doing her job. She is highly respected in Washington. She has always received accelerated promotions for her outstanding performances." explained Harm.

"While I appreciate the compliments, reality tells me something very different. I've lived a very lonely life the last twenty years. I'm not married and I don't have any children.

Hardly a sign that I'm loved by all." replied Mac as she walked out of the room. She felt like crying at that moment. She was beginning to wonder why she had bothered to come. Some very painful memories were resurfacing after so many years.

"What's wrong? What did we say?" asked Tammy.

"She has suffered from abandonment issues ever since her mother left when she was fifteen years old. Ever since then anyone she has ever loved has left her. Even I was guilty of that several years ago when I left JAG and returned to the fleet to fly again.

I was only gone six months, but it hurt our relationship for a long time. When she was ready to trust me again, I wasn't ready to be with her in the manner she needed me to be. I couldn't give her what she wanted.

It led to some poor decisions on both our parts. It has only been the last year that we have gotten back to where we were before I left to fly." answered Harm.

"It must have been very special Harm from what I've seen today and the pictures in the albums." observed Ben.

"I think it's time that we head over to the hall. Maybe when she sees her friends and how we all feel about her she'll feel better." offered Tammy.


	5. Chapter 5

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part five

Reunion Hall

Harm found Mac and gave her a warm hug. She snuggled close to him to regain her strength and composure. They joined Ben and Tammy in the car. A few minutes later they were at the reception hall where the reunion was being held.

Ben and Tammy walked in first followed shortly by Harm and Mac. They walked up to the table where there was two thirty something middle age women welcoming all the guest. Eliza and Nancy were the two women sitting behind the table.

They were checking off the roster and handing out name tags to all the arrivals. When they looked up to see Sarah standing there they let out a small scream of delight. They stood up and rounded the table to give her a hug.

"We heard that you were coming tonight Sarah. We couldn't believe it when we heard." greeted Eliza.

"You look so beautiful Sarah! We've missed you so much." added Nancy.

"Who have you brought with you Sarah? He's gorgeous." asked Eliza.

"You make a great looking couple Sarah." observed Nancy.

Mac was surprised to see them so excited. While they were friends in high school, they were hardly close. Ben had told her that everyone was looking forward to seeing her.

"He's Harmon Rabb Jr. He's a commander in the Navy. He's stationed in Washington with me. We work at JAG Headquarters as lawyers." Mac introduced them to Harm.

"Are those wings Commander? Were you a fighter pilot?" asked Eliza smiling.

"Sarah always said she wanted to marry a fighter pilot." added Nancy causing Mac to blush. It was the second time someone had mentioned that since she arrived yesterday.

"Yes ma'am, I taught Tom Cruise everything he needed to know to be a top gun pilot and a trial lawyer. But as you can see he was only a pale imitation to the real thing." smiled Harm.

He gave them one of his killer flyboy smiles that Mac loved. Eliza and Nancy swooned.

"Do you work with Sarah?" asked Eliza.

"Yes ma'am. Almost six wonderful years. She's the best partner I ever had. She's one of the best lawyers in the military." replied Harm.

"You're a marine Sarah? You look too beautiful to be a marine." asked a stunned Nancy.

"That's me alright. No one ever believes that I'm a marine. I'm a Lieutenant Colonel in the Marine Corp. and the Chief of Staff at Headquarters." replied Mac.

"Wow!" exclaimed Nancy and Eliza.

"Come with us Sarah, everyone wants to see you, everyone has missed you terribly." ordered Eliza.

Nancy and Eliza led Mac away to a group of ladies who were looking on in anticipation as Mac moved in their direction.

This left Harm with Ben who led him over to the area where he could get himself a drink and see Mac in an environment that was not often seen. She was the most important person in the room. Everyone wanted to see her, talk to her, and just be happy to be with her.

She wasn't completing for anyone's attention, she was the center of attention of those who loved her as the long lost friend who had influenced so many lives. He looked around and saw a wall eight feet high by twenty feet wide.

The sign at the top of the poster read Welcome Back Home Sarah. It was filled with notes and messages from all her friends. There was a section filled with her high school accomplishments. Another section was devoted to her military career.

And the last section had pictures of her since she joined JAG. He was a little surprise, but then again not, to see that he was in most of the pictures with her. It was a common theme in their life, everyone pictured them together as a couple.

Mac would like this poster he thought. He saw some pictures of her in high school. She looked beautiful even then with her long dark hair flowing behind her.

There was no doubt in his mind that Ben was right, every boy in school was in love with her, especially after seeing her in a couple of prom dresses with her hair up. She looked so beautiful and happy.

Then again he couldn't remember a time when she was dressed up formally for a social event that he was with her that she wasn't happy. He saw pictures of them from her album. It was different seeing the picture of them blown up.

He could see what everyone else saw. He marveled at how beautiful she was and how happy she was to be in his arms. He never realized before how happy she was when she looked at him even when they were with other people.

He came across the section listing her accomplishments while she was in high school. It was very impressive. Even back then she exceeded anything that anyone else did.

She made the all star team in every sport she played each year. She had six MVP awards. She had hit over four hundred in softball and had more than fifty homers. She averaged eighteen points and twelve rebounds a game in basketball. She led the league three times in kills in Volley ball.

She was class Valedictorian. Very impressive considering she told him she started drinking when she was fifteen years old. He came upon the portion listing her military career. Even he was impress as he read about some of the things she had done that he hadn't been aware of.

"What are you looking at Sailor?" asked Mac as she saw the wall honoring her. She slipped her arm around his and rested her head on his shoulder.

"The History of the Incredible Sarah MacKenzie. Superstar athlete, the most beautiful girl, best smile, twice a prom queen, most likely to succeed, did I mention the most beautiful girl, and the funniest girl." replied Harm with admiration.

"I have told you on more than one occasion that I was a funny girl." smiled Mac.

"For some reason Bud doesn't think so." argued Harm.

"Bud's a dweeb. Anyone who names his kid after a Star Trek character who was on TV before he was born isn't someone I take seriously." countered Mac.

"Lets see what else is there of interest about Sarah MacKenzie. Everyone's dream girl, best legs ..... " smiled Harm.

"It doesn't say that!" exclaimed Mac as she slapped his shoulder.

"True, but she does." smiled Harm as she blushed.

"Class Valedictorian, most popular. You had a pretty rich and fulfilling time in high school."

"That's only because I didn't want to go home. The longer I was at school the less time I was home." explained Mac.

"You were an amazing girl back then. It's no wonder why you're so amazing now. They did an outstanding job here Mac. You should be very proud of all your accomplishments and that you have so many friends who love you." praised Harm.

"Thank you Harm, but I'm sure that if we posted all of the great Harmon Rabb's accomplishments, it would be equally impressive." replied Mac.

While that might be true he thought, tonight was about Sarah MacKenzie, and not about Harmon Rabb or anyone else. They were here to honor an American Hero who was loved by all.

"You know Mac, as good as you look in these pictures, they don't do you enough justice. You're even more beautiful in person." smiled Harm causing Mac to blush again.

"So I've been told a few times tonight. Thank you Harm. I think it's time to eat, my stomach is rumbling." smiled Mac.

"I told you that you should eat something beforehand." smiled Harm. His marine was always hungry.

"I was too nervous to eat. I haven't seen these people in seventeen years. I didn't know what to think. When I left here I never looked back. There was nothing here that I wanted to come back for." countered Mac.

"Well it was easy to see that everyone was happy to see you Mac. Kind of reminds me of my academy reunions. Everyone is always happy to see you." smiled Harm.

"I guess it's like Ben said, in high school everyone has their own problems that they had to deal with. They're trying to find out who they are. After awhile everyone grows up and just wants to be accepted for who they are." reflected Mac.

They joined Ben, Tammy, and a few other close friends for dinner where they talked and caught up. After dinner there as a band playing and everyone danced. It wasn't long though before many of the couples began moving to the side to watch Harm and Mac dance.

They were so good. They moved as though they were gliding on ice. They were a beautiful couple. They looked like two people in love. Mac looked like a rose next to Harm in his dress white.

Mac looked around as she sensed that they were alone on the dance floor. It always amazed her how they always seemed to clear a dance floor. Everyone wanted to watched them dance together. Some said that they looked like two people in love.

Some said they looked like they were painting a canvas with their movements. She didn't really care. She liked being in his arms and dancing was usually the only way that was going to happen.


	6. Chapter 6

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part six

A short time later Ben asked Harm to say a few words about Sarah. He was the important person in her life now. She hadn't been in their lives for a very long time. He could tell them more about Sarah.

"I want to thank everyone for coming tonight. It has been very special evening since one of own has returned home to us. She was a very special lady when she was here even though she didn't feel that way herself.

She inspired many of us to be a better person, that you could overcome the pitfalls and obstacles in your life and be successful. She was great in the classroom and equally impressive on the athletic field.

As many of you know by visiting our wall of honor she is also an American Hero. She has taken her great work ethic, leadership ability, and inspiration to become one of the finest marines to ever serve in the military.

She has always been our hero, now she's American's hero too. Welcome home Sarah MacKenzie. We have all missed you. Please do not stay away as long again. We love you." orated Ben as he finished to a standing ovation as the people in attendance showed their agreement.

Mac was shocked by Ben's speech. She had never done anything special while she was here in high school. She had done what was necessary to survive. She did have to agree though she did have a good work ethic, was considered a fine leader, and she did try to inspire the junior officers as much as she could.

But still, her contribution to her friend's successes was of their own doing. She had not done any of it for them or herself. She had done it so she didn't have to go home at night. By the time she had graduated high school she had forgotten all of them.

She stood up to acknowledge the ovation from many of her friends. She had years of experience accepting congratulations from officials and senior officers who wanted to recognize her for her accomplishments even though what she had done was only her job.

"Now I would like to introduce you to a man who has been a major part of her life the last few years. If it wasn't for him we might not have had the honor of being with Sarah tonight. He's a Commander in the Navy.

He's a former tomcat fighter pilot turned lawyer. He works with Sarah at JAG Headquarters in Washington. He has received two Distinguish Flying Crosses and the Navy Medal of Honor. Welcome Commander Harmon Rabb Jr." introduced Ben.

There was standing ovation as Harm walked up to the stage where Ben was. There were shouts of approval including

"You got your fighter pilot Sarah! You're right Sarah, dreams can come true!" from a chorus of her lady friends.

"I liked him because he was pretty and he could dance. The fact that he's a pilot was secondary." Sarah retorted causing Harm to smile. His marine always needed to be in control of the situation.

"I would like to thank you all for welcoming me here tonight. To be honest with you all I was greatly surprised by the attention you have all given Sarah tonight. It's not because you all love her, but because her memories of her high school days have not been pleasant.

Her memories were filled with her mother leaving her on her fifteen birthday because her drunk and abusive father was abusive one time too many. She had to deal with him by herself for three more years and then her last memories of high school was her friend Eddie dying in a car crash.

I have know her for six years now. She has always been the most beautiful and caring woman I have ever know. She challenges me to be better everyday. She has always been special as she has always received accelerate promotions for her outstanding work.

But there has always been a sense of loss with her. Three years ago that started to change when her father died. She found out that he was proud of all her accomplishments. She also saw her mother for the first time in seventeen years and now has a relationship with her.

But there was still something missing. She was still unhappy with her high school years. She didn't remember them as a time spent with friends, only as a trouble time due to her family misfortunes.

But I think that has changed this weekend. You have shown her that she was loved and that you cared for her very much. You have shown her that she was special in all your lives and I think the healing process has finally been completed.

You have all given her back the happy memories of her youth during a time when she was in so much pain." thanked Harm to a round of applause.

Everyone was moved by his speech especially Mac. Harm was right, a heavy load had been lifted from her chest. She felt better than ever before.

"As you can see by the many of the photos of Sarah and I on the wall of honor, there are many people who think of Sarah and I as a couple. We have been partners at JAG almost six years.

We used to called ourselves Batman and Robin for a few years in the beginning of our relationship because we never lost.

Last year when we were in Afghanistan we decided to change our moniker to Butch and Sundance as we braved the untamed land of Afghanistan like the old American west." smiled Harm

"Sarah MacKenzie, an American Hero. What a fitting tribute to the most beautiful and amazing woman I have ever known. She's my hero too. She has been for a long time. She has saved my life more than a few times.

We have traveled all over the world together, Europe, Russia, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, and Panama. We have even traveled under the North Pole in a sub, cross the equator in the Pacific on a aircraft carrier.

Last year Sarah received the Marine Medal of Honor, the highest award the Marine Corps gives. There has been only one other woman in history of the Marine Corp to have ever received one and that was over one hundred forty years ago.

She handled a very difficult situation in a manner that no one else could have handled as successfully as she did. She had been assigned to retrieve a marine corporal from police custody after he was accused of rape.

They had been followed back to the US Embassy by an angry mob made up of the local population. While the security gate was being secured the marine in charge of security of the embassy was killed and his second was blinded.

The second wanted to mount machine guns on the roof to fire over the heads of the crowd to disperse them. Sarah advised him not to fire. She thought it was better to not give the crowd a reason to get angrier and to riot and knock the fence down.

The second followed her advice. One never argues with a colonel in the Marine Corp especially if it's only a suggestion. They were able to keep things calm until all the sensitive material was destroyed at the embassy.

She led the embassy staff and the marine security team safely through a escape tunnel to a secondary extraction site a mile away. They were all extracted safely with no loss of life. I can honestly tell you that after sixteen years in the navy,

no one could have done a better job that day than Sarah. There would have been loss of life if anyone else had been in charge, whether it was civilian life, a member of the embassy staff, or more marines. She deserved the recognition that she received.

Sarah has always been my hero. As I mentioned before we have traveled the world sometimes getting into sticky situations. She has always had my back especially last year when I thought I was going to die.

My only thought at the time was of Sarah, that somehow if I kept on thinking about her I would survive. I know it didn't make any sense at the time since she was more than a few hundred miles away, but I knew my survival depended upon her." Harm paused for effect.

A tear came to Mac's eye as she remembered that was the worse night of her life. The night she almost lost Harm.

"It was the worse night of my life." said Mac as she saw the mood in the room change to deathly silence.

"I had gone to the fleet to do my yearly qualifications. I was on my way back to Norfolk, Virginia when the jet I was flying developed engine trouble during the storm of the century. Needless to say my plane went down.

When it was time to eject my RIO pulled the handle. She ejected, but I didn't, I was left behind in the cockpit. I was able to pull myself together long enough to eject twenty seconds later.

Not very long you might think, but when you're traveling at a speed over four hundred miles an hour it's long enough to land in the ocean far away from my RIO. Search and Rescue was able to find my RIO a short time later, but they weren't able to find me.

They weren't even looking in the right area to find me. You don't know how big the ocean is until they can't find you. They were forced to call off the search until the weather cleared. I had been in the water about three hours when they finally resumed the search.

They were looking for me hundreds of miles away from where I was. It didn't look like they weren't going to find me before I died from hypothermia. That's where Sarah comes in. She has a very special gift that saved my life.

You might ask what that particular gift might be to find me when she was hundreds of miles away. About two years ago we were tying a case where a naval officer, who was part of the Star Gazer program, committed suicide.

The program was about remote viewing, that is seeing what happens on the battlefield from the safety of headquarters. Confused? Join the club. Not many people in the military believe in it.

Think about the psychics on TV who find missing people when the police can't find them. Sarah was the prosecutor in the case. Sarah didn't believe in remote viewing, so trying to find the General in charge of the Star Gazer program guilty wasn't an issue for her.

The trial was over in less than a week. Sarah had proven her case. During the trial her little sister Chloe from the Big Sister Program went missing. With the trial in recess over the weekend Sarah flew up to Vermont to help find Chloe.

A funny thing happened while she was flying to Vermont. She had a remote vision herself. She saw the location of where Chloe was. There was a burning fallen tree. Chloe walked out from behind it.

It wasn't long before Sarah was landing at the airport and was picked up by Chloe grandmother. On the way back to the farm they came upon a fallen tree in the road. Sarah asked if Chloe rode her horse in the area.

Her grandmother said yes. She sometimes rode an old logging trail in the area. Chloe's grandmother wanted to go another route back to the farm, but Sarah knew somehow that Chloe was nearby.

She walked passed the tree and called out Chloe's name a few times. Chloe appeared a few minutes later with a sprain ankle, hungry, but happy to see Sarah. Sarah had debunk the General's claims in court that remote vision was possible.

She ended a program that had been existence for more than twenty year only to use the same technique that was used in the program to find Chloe." smiled Harm as he paused once again to gauge the effect of what he was saying. There was murmuring in the crowd.

"Now you might ask what does this story have to do with anything or with me crashing into the Atlantic Ocean? Well, like I said the Search and Rescue team was looking for me in the wrong place and time was quickly running out for me.

I also told you that all my thoughts while I was in the water were about Sarah as I waited to be rescued. Well, with Chloe's insistences Sarah was able to have another remote viewing. She saw my raft floating in the ocean and pointed out its location on a nautical map.

The Admiral asked the Captain of the ship if they had found me. When the Captain said no, the Admiral asked him what the odds were of finding me. The Captain said it wasn't looking very good. The Admiral gave the Captain the coordinates of my location base on Sarah's remote viewing.

He told the Captain that Sarah had been successful before. The Captain didn't want to, but he took a chance with his limited resources and sent Search and Rescue to the location that Sarah had provided him.

They found me a short time later to my relief and Sarah's. I was in the third stage of hypothermia. If they had waited twenty minutes to make the decision to look for me where Sarah said I was,

I wouldn't be here today honoring this amazing woman. We have always had this special connection between us. I've always said I know where she is. That day she proved that she knows where I am." concluded Harm.


	7. Chapter 7

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part seven

"That reminds me of another story that I believe that Sarah should tell. It's about the time I took a ride in a Russian sub after another Russian sub had torpedoed itself a week earlier. Sarah found a way to be there watching my back even though she wasn't on the sub with me." smiled Harm.

Mac walked up to where Harm was standing to join him and to related the story to her friends.

"Yeah, that was one of our better and more interesting adventures. There are two components to this story. The first component concerns a Russian Army Officer who was sent here to investigate why a Russian sub had been destroyed.

The Russian leadership had told him that it had collided with one of our subs, the Watertown. That's because the Watertown had been in the area and had shown up in port with damage to its hull.

The Russian officer knew Harm from when Harm went to Russia to check out their military laws the year before. They had became good friends. They were hoping that Harm could get them information they needed because of his friendship with the Russian officer that they weren't able to obtain on their own.

But all Harm could learn was that the Watertown wasn't involved in the Russian sub being destroy. It had been following the Russian sub in its baffles. It's a sub's blind spot.

It was reported that the sub actually destroyed itself with one of its new torpedoes that the Russians had developed, it had a malfunction.

Harm managed to get a ride on a Russian sub so that they could prove to him that Russian subs do not destroy themselves." smiled Mac as she saw the interest of all those in the audience.

"The second component of the story involves how I ended up on the Watertown following Harm in the Russian sub. There was a young woman who wanted to serve on a sub like her father, her grandfather, and her brothers.

Unfortunately for her women are not allowed to serve on subs in the Navy. They say it's because there isn't enough space. A few years before I had spent a few weeks on the Watertown so I knew that was an honest assessment on their part.

It's hard to move around on a sub without bumping into someone. Harm and I spent two weeks under the polar icecaps conducting an investigation while going from Norway to Korea. It was the most miserable experience of my life.

The fact that Harm and I weren't getting along very well at the time didn't help matters. The fact I was almost killed made the experience even worse. I was lucky that once again Harm saved my life. He had to give me mouth to mouth because I had stopped breathing." smiled Mac to a round of whistles.

"Anyway I've digressed from the story. I was representing the young woman before a congressional hearing. The hearing was being headed by an annoying congresswoman who was always championing lost causes for women.

She suggested that I should take a ride on a sub to gather information for the committee. I wanted to slap her silly. I had already been on a sub for more than two weeks. It's a miserable existence. I didn't need to take another ride on the sub to confirm that.

But since I knew that this congresswoman wasn't going to change her mind and arguing with her was like telling a month old puppy not to piss on the floor, I decided to make the best of a bad situation.

I knew the Watertown was going to be following the Russian sub that Harm was on or at the very least be in the area. Since I knew the Commander it wasn't too hard to arrange to go with him and follow Harm.

He asked me why I chose him. I told him that Harm was on the Russian sub. He was surely going to get into trouble since he always seems to attract it. I wanted to be in position to help him if he needed it.

It was like killing two birds with one stone. I would be there for Harm and I would be able to write a report about women serving on a sub for the committee.

I asked the commander of the Watertown to follow the Russian sub. He was only three hundred meters behind the Russian sub in its wake. The Russian sub didn't know that we were right behind it. We could also hear what was going on inside their sub.

When the Russian commander told his guests that they were going to fire the prototype torpedo I heard the panic in Harm's voice. He questioned the Russian commander. He had been told what would happen if the torpedo was fired. He didn't want to be there on board when the torpedo hit the sub.

I convinced the Commander to contact the Russian sub and to tell him what would happen if the Russian commander fired the torpedo. If he fired the new torpedo of theirs it would turn back on them and sink their sub.

I tried to convince Russian commander that we could hear everything that was being said on the Russian sub. That we had spies put listening devices into all their subs at the shipyard where they were being built.

I think he was confused because he knew what I was saying to him was true, but he didn't want to believe that it was possible. He also didn't want the civilians on board to know the truth." continued Mac.

"My Russian friend had asked me after he heard Sarah's voice over the two way radio 'Does she follow you everywhere?' You might wonder why he might ask me that question.

She followed me to Russia in 1999 when I went there to look for my father. In 2001 I had gone to Russia to review Russian Military Law when I met my friend. We went to Chechnya to check out a rogue Russian General.

Sarah came over to Russia looking for a Russian Army Officer who had connections to the KGB. He had killed a Naval officer she was defending. Sarah was in Moscow where a CIA agent and KGB agent who were fighting for jurisdiction.

Since they were ignoring her she decided to look for me. The KGB agent told her I was in Chechnya. So she decided to travel from Moscow to Chechnya in a cab just to see me. It was a good thing she did because she saved my life.

The Russian Army Officer she was looking for was in Chechnya and had left a truck filled with explosives right outside a building I was in. I would have been killed if Sarah hadn't shown up.

We found out that the Russian President was going to be there. It turned out the RAO was there to kill him and blame the Chechnens for it. We managed to get out of the building, deactivate the bomb, and saved the Russian President's life.

She met my Russian friend at that time. Even though he was surprised to hear that Sarah had followed me, in the end he was pleased that she did for she was responsible for saving my life when I was on the Russian sub." smiled Harm.

"Like I said trouble has a way of finding Harm. Now is it alright if I get back to my story? The Russian Commander went ahead and fired the new prototype torpedo against the wishes of Harm and the civilians on board.

The torpedo went about three hundred meters before they sent it a command to change directions. Unfortunately for them it changed directions alright, it turned and headed back towards the sub.

The American Commander fired a torpedo at the Russian sub to intercept the Russian torpedo. It was a scary moment as the Russian sub maneuvered out of the way of the torpedo and fired a torpedoes at us.

Decoys were sent out causing their torpedoes to explode before they reached us. Our torpedo intercepted their rogue torpedo and it was destroyed only a few meters from their sub. We all lived to fight another day."

"She saved my life that day. She's my hero." said Harm.

"You have saved my life many times too Harm." replied Mac.

Author's Note: This story is quickly coming to a close, only three more chapters. I am working on four or five stories that are near completion, but may be a week or two away from being posted.

In the meantime I have posted some short stories for other TV shows.

They are: **Star Trek Enterprise** **StarGate-1 ****Smallville**

A Week at the Lake Lost in Another World Before the End

Abandon and Forgotten Welcome Back Daniel Jackson Fairy Tales Can Come True

After the Wedding Where Did Daniel Go

T'Pol Has Visitors

I have also started a **Harry Potter** story called **The Blending**,

which will be an epic story (300 pages double space)

I want to thank everyone who have taken the time to read my stories. Some are better than others. Thank you for your kind words.


	8. Chapter 8

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part eight

Sunday

Mac's apartment

Harm and Mac returned home the next day. Harm had never seen Mac so happy, contented, and relaxed. The trip back home had done wonders for her. The emotional baggage she had been carrying for years was finally gone. She could finally move on with her life and be happy.

"Are you glad that you went now Mac?" asked Harm.

"Yes Harm, you were right. It was probably something I should have done years ago." replied Mac.

"Maybe, but I think the time was right. I think you needed to come to terms with your father first when he died and then seeing your mother again after so many years." offered Harm.

"That's two for two Harm. How unlike you." smiled Mac.

"Well before, your last memories of home were bad, an abusive father and a mother who abandoned you. While your mother may not be in your life everyday, she's still a part of it now. You know that she loves you." Harm continued his analysis.

"There may be some truth in what you say, but you also know I fear nothing, I don't back down from a challenge." rebutted Mac.

"Maybe, but it was still a part of who you were and got in the way of all your relationships." countered Harm.

"Yeah right Harm. There was only one thing that got in the way of my relationships with other men, you and your inability to commit to someone. You have been the one who always runs away.

First you ran to Annie when she became available instead of dealing with your feelings for me. Every woman you have ever been involved with has told me that you were in love with me and they couldn't compete with me for your attention.

You sabotaged your relationship with Annie when you saw me with Dalton. I showed you that I wanted to be with you when I went to Russia with you to find your father. Once again you ran when we got back.

It wasn't long before you were involved with someone else. I thought we had something special between us when we were in Russia. When I wanted to talk about us on the Watertown you ran. I almost died because of it.

You decided that you rather fly tomcats than be with me. Even Jordan recognized that you wanted to be with me rather than be with her. I tried to talk to you in Australia.

I tried to tell you how I felt and what I wanted, but once again you ran to someone else and I was stuck with Mic because he showed me a little attention.

I know I was hesitant at first when we first met. You were so perfect. You were tall, good looking, intelligent, had good sense of humor. I was scared to trust how I felt about you. I couldn't believe that you were real.

I didn't know how real your feelings were for me. It wasn't until you took me flying that I knew I had strong feelings for you. It made me feel good that you were willing to share your love of flying with me." argued Mac.

"I'm sorry, you're right Mac. I don't know why I could never tell you how I felt. I surely came up with enough excuses, mainly that we worked together. I guess I justified it as long as we worked together, you would be in my life.

I have to admit that I never thought that you would marry Mic. I thought that after a time you would see who he really was and wouldn't want to be with him. That's not to say Bugme was a bad guy, but he was someone I never thought that you would be interested in.

He's a great guy if you're looking for a drinking buddy, but he doesn't respect women like he should. I don't think he ever respected you. If he did he would have given you the time you needed after I crash.

I have to admit I was scared the day I left to do my quals. I thought I was going to lose you once you married him, maybe not that day, that week or month, but sooner or later he would have wanted to go back to Oz and he would have expected you to go with him.

I would have lost you for forever. I think a part of me would have died if you married him. I don't think I would ever be able to love someone again.

I think that's why I needed to get back instead of waiting.

It's why all I could think about when I was in the water was you. Nothing else mattered in the world then, only being with you." explained Harm.

"I was devastated that night when you went down. My worse fears had come true. When they called off the search I thought I was going to die of a broken heart. There was no way I would have been able to marry Mic.

Mic knew it because both he and I knew I wouldn't have felt the same sense of loss if it had been him who had crashed and died. I would have been sad, but I wouldn't have been broken up about it. All I could think about after that was you.

Chloe saw me and thought that if I concentrated I would be able to find you like I did with her, but I wasn't trying to find her, I was just dreaming about her. I still don't know how I found you. I guess it's that special connection that we have.

We always seem to know where the other is, maybe it really is true." sighed Mac.

"I love you Sarah Mackenzie."

"I love you too Harmon Rabb."

Author's Note: This story is quickly coming to a close, only three more chapters. I am working on four or five stories that are near completion, but may be a week or two away from being posted.

In the meantime I have posted some short stories for other TV shows.

They are: **Star Trek Enterprise ** **StarGate-1 ****Smallville**

A Week at the Lake, Lost in Another, World Before the End

Abandon and Forgotten, Welcome Back Daniel Jackson, Fairy Tales Can Come True

After the Wedding, Where Did Daniel Go,

T'Pol Has Visitors

I have also started a **Harry Potter** story called **The Blending**,

which will be an epic story (300 pages double space)

I want to thank everyone who have taken the time to read my stories. Some are better than others. Thank you for your kind words.


	9. Chapter 9

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part nine

A few days later Harm picked up some two foot by four foot posters that he had made up from the snap shots Ben had sent to him by the Audio Visual department. He wanted a reproduction of the great wall thanking Sarah MacKenzie for her service to her country.

He wanted to share it with their friends at Jag. He had just finished putting up the display outside the break room when the Admiral walked out of his office and saw him standing there looking at the poster.

"Commander, what is this?" asked the Admiral. He didn't like his office area cluttered with unauthorized personal junk.

"As you know Mac and I went to her high school reunion last weekend Sir. It had been seventeen years since any of them had seen her. Her classmates wanted to show her how much she meant to them and to thank her for her service to their country.

They produced their version of the Wall welcoming back home Sarah MacKenzie, an American Hero. There are four sections to the Wall Sir. The first section covers her high school days.

The second section covers her military service records. The third section deals with her life the last few years Sir. The last section contains words from her friends." replied Harm.

"I see that you're in a lot of the pictures Commander." observed the Admiral.

"I didn't choose the pictures Sir. Her friend Ben had a choice of four albums to choose photos from. As I said before, the theme of the night was to show Mac that she was loved and not forgotten. Part of that includes what they believe her life is now." replied Harm.

"How did it go?" asked the Admiral.

"We were picked up by Ben Johnson. He took us back to his house. I guess he married one of her best friends when she was in high school. They had about fifty of her friends there waiting to greet her. Many of them she had played sports with." replied Harm as he pointed to the board.

"She played three sports. She was a twelve time all star, six time MVP. I didn't realize that she was so athletically incline. While I know that she is a team player I always pictured her more as a loner, someone who does things by herself." observed the Admiral.

"I'm not sure I would agree with that assessment of her Sir. She's an active participant in life. She likes spending time doing things with other people. It's one of the reason she misses Chloe so much. We spend a lot of time together when we're away on investigations." replied Harm.

"How did they respond to seeing her Commander?" asked the Admiral.

"It was like a large sorority get together Sir. They were so excited to see her and catch up with each other. It was like going back to the academy for the Army Navy game. She was in her element. All the attention was focused on her and she loved it. I have never seen her so happy." replied Harm.

"It wasn't long before she was calling for her photo albums and showing her friends her life and memories. Every photo had its own story to tell." smiled Harm.

"What did they like the most?" asked the Admiral.

"I'm sure you mean besides me Sir." laughed Harm.

"Commander!" bellowed the Admiral.

"I'm sorry Sir, but they did like seeing her with me. They couldn't believe that she was a marine. They didn't think it was fair that any woman should look that good in a uniform." smiled Harm.

"They aren't the only ones. I have been hearing that on Capitol Hill and at top level Staff meetings for years. They still can't understand why she wasn't part of that promo they did when you were the Navy poster boy." sighed the Admiral.

"Don't remind me Sir. My life was hell for a long time after that. Anyway, they were fascinated that she looked so beautiful in formal attire and that she had so many gowns. I guess many of them don't have more than four or five which they have had for many years." smiled Harm.

"How did she explain that." asked the Admiral. He had to admit he didn't think he ever saw her in the same gown twice.

"Beautiful people need beautiful clothes." laughed Harm.

"She told them that she attends many formal social events and needs a different one for each one she attends. One year we attended more than ten from Thanksgiving through the first of the year. She had a different one for each of them."

The Admiral took a quick look at the photos and noticed that she wasn't wearing the same gown in any of them.

"It was the same the next night when we attended the reunion. We weren't there more than two minutes before her friends were leading her away to make the rounds.

They were so excited to see her. You could sense the nervousness in many of them as they waited their turn to greet her and talk to her. She was like a Rock star meeting her people." smiled Harm.

"Surely you jest Commander." said the Admiral.

"I wish Sir. Ben sent me a copy of the film they shot that night covering the return of Sarah MacKenzie, An American Hero." smiled Harm.

The Admiral stood there scratching his predominately bald head wondering whether the Commander was pulling his leg.

"Look at the board Sir. She was very popular. Best smile, twice a prom queen, the girl that every boy wanted to date, the girl every girl wanted to be like, most beautiful, most popular, most likely to succeed, the funniest girl." smiled Harm.

A couple of hours later Mac walked into the bullpen and saw a group of people looking at something on the wall outside the break room. She wondered what they could be looking at. Had the Admiral posted something important that required everyone's attention?

She walked over to where everyone was and saw Bud and Harriet in the middle of the group chirping away at what they saw. She wondered what had them so excited.

"What are you looking at Harriet?" asked Mac.

"It's a poster about you Ma'am. Sarah MacKenzie, An American Hero." replied Harriet proudly. Harriet didn't know anyone she thought more of than Mac.

"How did that thing get here?" asked Mac looking around for Harmon Rabb.

"This is so amazing Ma'am. Even in high school your accomplishments were legendary." glowed Harriet.

"Not really Harriet. I did what I had to do so I didn't have to go home. That's not something to be proud of. Mr. Roberts, what does it say near the bottom of the first section?" challenged Mac.

"You were the prom queen twice." replied Bud. That was hardly a surprise he thought. The Colonel was a very beautiful woman even as a teenager.

"Below that Bud." ordered Mac wondering why he was being difficult.

"Best smile." said Bud. The Colonel did have a wonderful smile. Harriet once told him she had at least five different ones.

"Keep going Bud." ordered Mac wondering why he was being so dense.

"Funniest girl." replied Bud a bit surprise.

The Colonel was anything but amusing. She was a gung ho marine. He had seen her chew out sailors and marines and smile afterwards. She was not someone to mess with.

"I distinctly remember you telling me that I didn't have a sense of humor. You didn't think that I was as funny as Diane." challenged Mac.

"Ma'am? I didn't know you very well back then. You asked me how you and Diane were different." cowered Bud.

"I had been at Jag for two years by then Bud. You probably knew me longer than you knew Diane. We worked together. Harm has told me more than a few times how much Diane and I are alike." informed Mac.

"Yes Ma'am." cowered Bud. He was not going to argue with a Colonel even if he believed that she was wrong.

Later that afternoon Harm returned to his office. He had been in court all day. He was tired and looking forward to going home and sucking down a few beers. He was about to sit down and relax when Mac entered his office.

"What's up Mac?" asked Harm. He always enjoyed looking at her. She usually greeted him with a beautiful smile.

"When were you going to tell me about the poster Harm? Where did you get it?" asked Mac a bit angrily.

"I had Ben email me a copy. I had it blown up in the Audio Visual department." replied Harm wondering what was wrong.

"I wished you hadn't Harm. You know I don't like my personal life on display especially my life when I was a teenager." moaned Mac.

"I just wanted to share with our friends how special you are and what the people who knew you the best thought of you. They all loved you Mac and they wanted to show their appreciation for all that you have given to your country." replied Harm.

"Harm, there's a big difference. Most of them were my friends who hadn't seen me in seventeen years. The poster was about who I was, what I have done since high school, and who the special person in my life is." explained Mac.

"I'm the special person in your life?" questioned Harm.

"Harm! There is a big difference. Most of the people here at Jag are only work associates, not true friends. I don't want everyone knowing about my past. While I'm not ashamed of anything on these posters, there isn't anyone here except for you that I want to know about my past.

As for the photos of you and me together, you know how much I love them. I wouldn't have put them into an album. But Harm, they are my memories of the time I have shared with you. It's my decision whether or not I share them with anyone or whom I want to share them with.

I shared them with friends at Ben and Tammy's party because I hadn't seen them in a long time. We were catching up. I didn't mind that Ben decided to share a few of the photos with more of my friends who hadn't been able to be at their party.

They wanted to know what I had been doing since high school. But I do mind posting them here in the office. It implies to everyone that we are a couple and have been for quite some time. Which you know isn't the truth.

At best all we are is two friends who like to share a dance or two together." moaned Mac.

"I know I haven't always shown you how I feel about you Sarah, but I have always cared about for you very much. You can see it in all the photos. I think we both know that we have had issues with our past that has kept us apart.

A common theme for us is abandonment. With you it was when your mother left when you were fifteen. For me it was my father went missing when I was only five. When I became an aviator I swore that I would never leave behind a wife and child liked my father and grandfather did.

I knew what it was like growing up without a father. I saw what it did to my mother. You've seen what it did to Annie. It was why I asked you to wait five years before having a baby together.

I realize now that I was being selfish and not being fair to you. I should have talked to you more about it. I know you wanted to talk about it after I returned when we were down under.

I knew that was what you wanted, but I wasn't ready. I should have talked to you about it. It would have saved us two years of agony." moaned Harm.

"There's nothing that we can do about that now Harm. All we can do now is move forward. I expect to see that poster gone by the end of the day. You can cook me dinner tonight to make up for your faux pas." conceded Mac.

Author's Note: This story is quickly coming to a close, only two more chapters. I am working on four or five stories that are near completion, but may be a week or two away from being posted.

In the meantime I have posted some short stories for other TV shows.

They are: **Star Trek Enterprise ****StarGate-1 ****Smallville**

A Week at the Lake, Lost in Another, World Before the End

Abandon and Forgotten, Welcome Back Daniel Jackson, Fairy Tales Can Come True

After the Wedding, Where Did Daniel Go,

T'Pol Has Visitors

I have also started a **Harry Potter** story called **The Blending**,

which will be an epic story (300 pages double space)

I want to thank everyone who have taken the time to read my stories. Some are better than others. Thank you for your kind words.


	10. Chapter 10

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part ten

2 June

Harm's apartment

Ben sent Harm a copy of the films that were shot at Ben's house and at the reunion. He had convinced Ben that they were more likely to get Mac to return it if she could view the pleasant memories of the past weekend.

He also thought it was right since they had honored her for her service to their country as well as the contributions she made while she attended high school with them. Ben agreed to send him a copy.

Harm invited Mac to spend the day with him and invited the Admiral for dinner. He wanted to show Mac what he saw while he was there and the magnitude of how her friends felt about her. You can't appreciate the intensity of the storm when you're in the eye.

He also wanted the Admiral to see that he wasn't kidding about how much her friends loved her and how special she really was. She was with her people. She was the star and was bigger than anyone else.

"Thank you for inviting me to dinner Harm. You're a great cook and the company couldn't be better." smiled AJ as he rubbed his stomach.

"Not at all AJ, it's probably something I should do more often. Now that we've had a good meal, it's time for the entertainment." grinned Harm. He wanted to surprise Mac.

"I'm not sure having a good meal is worth listening to you sing Harm." replied AJ.

"Harm is a fine singer. I enjoy listening to him play his guitar and sing on a full stomach." smiled Mac.

"You don't have to worry AJ, I'm not going to sing. Ben sent me an edited copy of the parties for Mac. I think you will be surprise at the attention she gets from her people." replied Harm.

"Great! Just what I love, home movies." grumbled AJ.

"This at Ben and Tammy's home. They were almost fifty people here. They were all so happy to see her." smiled Harm.

"Who's the man with you Sarah? He's gorgeous. How long have you been with him? Where did you meet him Sarah?"

"You're a Marine Sarah? You're kidding us. You're too beautiful to be a Marine."

"Harm's a pilot? You always said you were going to find yourself a pilot and see the world Sarah."

"You drive a corvette Sarah? I thought you didn't like people who drove them. You said they were pompous asses. You said a jeep was the only vehicle worth driving."

"Flyboys have short attention spans. You have to have something to keep their attention focus on you. Besides, you haven't driven until you've drove a corvette. It's a marvelous way to get around."

"You met your pilot in a Rose Garden and you've traveled all over the world together with him. It's kismet. It's a fairy tale come true."

"What does a woman want? A good man, a great career, and lots and lots of shoes!!!"

"Just how many gowns do you have Sarah?"

"I have almost fifty gowns and each one has its own matching pair of shoes!"

Mac watched the film. Tears came to her eyes as she watched the magnitude of the day. Her friends were truly happy to see her. There was no false fronts put forth before her. Harm was right that she couldn't completely appreciate her time there until she saw the total picture.

You're also right that they were fascinated with you Harm, though I can't figure out why that is. You're not a SEAL. I was also surprised to hear that you had so many gowns Mac, though I have to admit I can't ever remember seeing you in the same gown more than one." conceded AJ sighing.

"I'm sure you have AJ, but not usually twice in a six month period. As for liking Harm, I think it has more to do with what I told my friends. What my dreams were when I was a teenager. As you know my father was in the marines.

And as such he didn't like sailors, especially fighter pilots since he considered them the most worthless of the lot. They had the reputation of loving them and leaving them. Hardly ideal candidates for husbands." replied Mac.

"I think I'm going to call it a day Harm, Mac. Monday morning comes early after a holiday weekend. The SecNav will be on the phone complaining about something that happened over the weekend." moaned AJ.

"There's another film AJ. It covers the reunion. It's even more impressive than the little soiree at Ben's." Harm informed him.

"That's alright Commander, you can show me another time. There's just so much fun and glee from home movies that I care to endure in one evening." replied AJ.

"See you in the morning Sir." said Harm and Mac.

"What about you Marine? Are you up for another showing of the great Sarah MacKenzie?" asked Harm.

"Not right now Harm it's been a long week and I a bit tired. We can watch it together next weekend. I'll cook." replied Mac.

"You want to stay here or do you want me to drive you home?" asked Harm.

"If you don't mind I think I would like to spend the night with you sleeping in your arms." replied Mac.

"You were right Harm. I have never seen anything like that before. Then again I went to the Naval Academy when there were no women allowed. So I wouldn't know what a bunch of women did when they got together.

9 June

Mac's apartment

The following weekend Mac invited the Admiral, Bud and Harriet, and a few other close friends for dinner and a viewing of the Reunion.

They ate dinner and enjoyed polite conversation until it was time to view the film.

The film had been edited down to two and a half hours from over five hours of tape. The film caught the excitement of the event. It showed how much everyone cared about Sarah. They all missed her greatly.

It seemed that she didn't have a moment to herself as one person after another talked to her about something. Sometimes it was a favorite memory. For some it was how she had influenced their life.

They all knew what she was going through at the time, to see her succeed at so many things during that period of life was inspirational. It inspired them to become batter people themselves and to strive to succeed.

For many of them they considered her a friend who they loved and missed dearly. They all wondered why she stayed away for so long. Her father had left long ago soon after she went away to college.

Later they watched as Harm and Sarah told stories of their adventures together followed by testimonials to what impact she had on many of their lives. The athletic complex was named after her. There was a foundation named for her.

For someone who had grown up living a trouble life, her impact on all those closely associated with her had been great and everlasting. Many of them had continued the work she started almost twenty years ago.

Her current friends were stunned beyond belief at the outstanding accomplishments that Sarah had attained while in high school. She was a great leader even then. She influenced so many people that the impact was seen even today.

The Admiral was so impress he wanted to show the film to his superiors. He thought that she should receive an award for such inspiration. It was what the military was always looking for in their officers.

If what she had accomplished while she was in high school wasn't worthy of an award, then what was. He asked Harm if he could make a copy. He wanted to show the brass the inspirational work Sarah had accomplished at such a young age.

The work she began and inspiration she gave to others had led them to continue her work to such a point that they felt the need to honor her. They named an Athletic Complex and a Foundation after her.

It was the basis of her high level of performance since she became a Marine. The Marine Corp had been recognizing her work for years by her accelerated promotions.

Now it was time to recognize her contribution to society as a whole. So much of what she had done many years ago in school she still did today in the local community.

I have also started a **Harry Potter** story on the book site called **The Blending**,

which will be an epic story (300 pages double space)

I want to thank everyone who have taken the time to read my stories. Some are better than others. Thank you for your kind words.


	11. Chapter 11

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part eleven

27 June

SecNav's office

The Admiral managed to get the SecNav, CNO, and few other high ranking military personnel together. He wanted to show them the film and have them award a special Marine Commendation Medal to Mac.

"I don't understand AJ, why do you want us to view this film? What does a film about Colonel MacKenzie's high school reunion have to do with the Navy. I know she has been instrumental in the high standards that you have set and attained at Jag,

but what she did before she became a Marine is of no importance to us AJ. We're only concerned with the here and now. So if there isn't anything else AJ I would like to move this meeting onto the next thing on my agenda." moaned Nelson.

"Sir, if you view the film you will understand why and you will understand why I want her to receive this prestigious award. I understand your hesitance, I had them myself, but it is a film worth watching.

We all want to get the best people that we can into the Navy and Marines. As some of you are well aware of what a person is like during their formative years can be a prognosticator of what kind of officer they will be while they are in the service.

The film has been edited down to an hour from the three hour film I saw. It leaves out all the hoopla and deals with only her accomplishments and the results of her contribution." argued the Admiral.

"Alright AJ, we'll watch it. It must be important if you're willing to fight this hard for it. You don't usually ask for too much."

There was a viewing of the MacKenzie Wall. They saw her accomplishments as high schooler and then as a Marine. There was another section covering what Sarah meant to the different people who knew her.

Most of them dealt with inspiring them to help other people who were troubled or simply needed help in life. There was another grouping that told of overcoming personal problems, that it was possible if you worked together as a team.

There was no problem that couldn't be overcome if you work hard enough. One shouldn't accept limitations on oneself that were put there by others. Only you knew what your limitations were.

The people gathered there were as impress by Sarah's accomplishments as the Admiral was. They heard that her mother left her when she was only fifteen. She was left with an abusive alcoholic father.

That she was able to attain a 3.95 grade point average was astonishing. She was the class Valedictorian. If that wasn't impressive enough she was an outstanding athlete in three sports.

She was a nine time all star, six time league MVP. She led her teams to six undefeated seasons and seven state championships. Her school built upon those championships for years to come.

She founded the Big Sister program along with other honor roll students in her community. It inspired many more young women in the community to be a part of the program for many years to come.

The film began with one of her coaches named Sam Bradford.

""My name is Coach Sam Bradford. I don't come to many of these reunions anymore, but when I heard that Sarah MacKenzie was coming this year I had to attend. She made quite an impact on the athletic program here at Indian Ridge.

She was perhaps the greatest athlete to ever attend Indian Ridge, male or female. She played Volleyball, Basketball, and Softball. She inspired many average teams to not only conference champions, but state champions.

In 1995 we decided to establish a Athletic Hall of Fame. There were many athletes to select from and only five were to be chosen that first year. But who would be the first one to be inducted. There was much discussion about who the first one would be.

The consensus at the time was it should be Tommy Johnson, the two time league champion quarterback and all star pitcher. When we told him of the honor he told us he couldn't accept such an honor. There were more deserving candidates.

When we asked why? He told us that while his accomplishments might warrant his inclusion into the Hall, they didn't measure up. There was an athlete that more deserving than he was. His accomplishments paled next to hers.

When we asked him who he believed should be the first inductee into the Hall of Fame he told that Sarah MacKenzie was the most deserving. It was hard to disagree with that assessment.

Sarah's accomplishments were indeed great. She led her teams to seven state championships in three years during a time that Indian Ridge won eleven state championships. All the teams said that Sarah had been their inspiration.

She had led many teams that weren't expected to compete very well. They were picked to be in the middle of the pack. But Sarah inspired many of her teammates to overcome the low expectations of the other coaches.

She told her teammates to not let others determine their worthiness to be champions, but to determine their own worth by their own determination to succeed. No one knew their abilities better than they knew themselves.

Even after they won their first championship and return virtually everyone from the previous year, they were always underestimated as someone else in the league was supposed to be better than Sarah, but that never happened.

She was always the best as she was a league all star nine times and won six league MVPs. No one ever had the success that Sarah had. She was an inspiration to not only the athletes, but to the coaches themselves.

After reviewing her achievements she became the first inductee into the Indian Ridge Athletic Hall of Fame. But our recognition of Sarah MacKenzie didn't stop there.

In 1997 the Indian Ridge Athletic Complex was renamed the Sarah MacKenzie Athletic Complex in honor of her athletic talents, her leadership, and her inspiration. Our only regret was that Sarah wasn't there for the dedication.

After viewing the great wall we now understand. Sarah was serving our country in the same manner she serve al of us, with great leadership and dedication. Sarah MacKenzie, on behalf of the Indian Ridge Community, we thank you."

The film showed Sarah with tears in her eyes. Never in the world did she ever expect to hear such wonderful words concerning the years she spent here. A place she couldn't wait to get away from. She had made a difference afterall.

When the Admiral saw the Colonel with tears in her eyes, it reminded him of what she had told him about her time in high school. He decided to share some information with the people gathered there.

"Colonel MacKenzie didn't believe that there were any obstacles that couldn't be overcome if you believe in yourself and work hard. She was surprised that they had renamed the Athletic Complex after her. She couldn't believe that she had made such an impression on so many people."

The next person to stand up at the front of the audience was Carol Barton. She was a member of the National Honor Society at Indian Ridge during the time Sarah was there.

"I want to thank everyone for coming tonight to honor Sarah MacKenzie, an American Hero. She was a good friend and great inspiration to many of us who were in the honor society.

For many of us we didn't know what extra curricular activity to participate in to increase our chances of getting into the University of our choice. Sarah suggested forming a group to help out less fortunate young girls who didn't have someone in their lives to help them.

In this case young girls who were troubled and didn't have a female role model. She was instrumental of us in forming group that later became a branch of the Big Sister program in 1983. It began small with only ten volunteers serving twenty five girls.

Our organization grew to thirty volunteers serving a hundred girls four years later when she graduated. But we didn't stop there. Over the next fours years others continued to join our organization increasing to one hundred and twenty volunteers serving over five hundred girls in a ten town area.

Today our organizations has over two thousands volunteers serving over nine thousands girls in the surrounding area. It wouldn't have been possible if not for Sarah's inspiration.

In 1995 we named our program after Sarah, The Sarah MacKenzie Big Sister Association. We have help over fifteen thousands girls since we began eighteen years ago. We want to thank you Sarah for finally giving us the opportunity to say thank you."

The Admiral took the opportunity to tell everyone gathered what the Colonel had told him after that presentation,

"The Colonel was shocked to hear that she had inspired such a wonderful program that continued to grow and serve so many young girls long after she had left. That they had chosen to her in such a manner was heart warming and unexpected.

She had started the program to help other young girls like herself who had no one to turn to. She wanted to be there for someone because she thought it could make a difference in a young girl's life to know that someone actually cared.

Athletics to her was her salvation in high school. She had great coaches who listened to her and help her deal with her mother leaving her. They helped her to be successful in school and assisted her in navigating the next phase of her life, a good college.

She learned that hard work led to success and opportunity. And with that success it led her to her successful career in the Marines.

She was surprised to learn that many of her classmates had continued to be a part of the Big Sister Program after so many years. She had been surprised that they would name the program after her since there many who had given so much to the program. She had only help start the program."

"Sarah was our inspiration. She had overcome so much in her life to achieve so much in so short a period. She was a great Scholar, a great Athlete, a great Leader, and more importantly to us, she was a great human being.

We have done our best over the years to live up to the high standards that she inspired in us to maintain.

We have seen tonight by Sarah outstanding military record that she has continued to maintain only the highest standard of excellence that she taught us so many years ago.

She is considered to be one f the finest lawyers in the military. She speaks eight languages. She recently received the highest award that the Marine Corps has to offer, one that only one other woman has received in one hundred and forty years.

Sarah continues to be our inspiration. You have made a great impact on our lives. We want to thank you Sarah for being our friend and serving our country in the highest possible fashion." concluded Carol Barton.

"As you can see Sirs, Colonel MacKenzie was a special individual in high school. This a time when great leaders are born. As you have seen hat she not only was a great athlete, but a great scholar, leader, and humanitarian.

We all wonder how to find great leaders. What is it about them that makes them so great? Once we have found them what can we do to help them succeed? I think we have seen the answer today.

I have to be honest with you, I had known something about her history before joining the marines. I knew that her mother had abandoned her and that her father was an abusive alcoholic, but what I didn't know was what she had done to overcome her trouble life.

I had though her Uncle was the inspirational force in her life, but I was wrong, he only played a small part in her success. Colonel MacKenzie had the intestinal fortitude to be successful all on her own.

That she shared her ability with so many who continue her work shows great leadership almost twenty years later is deserving of recognition." orated the Admiral.

SecNav Nelson and the CNO were greatly impressed with what they saw. They all knew how good a Marine she was. They had been receiving reports about her work through out the years long before she became an important name in Washington.

Everywhere she had gone and had been stationed she had been recognized for her outstanding work, first in Japan, then Bosnia, and now in Washington. She had received accelerated promotions every few years. She was a rising star at Jag. She had polish and great military bearing.

They never knew her full history, that she had overcome so much difficulty in her young life. That she could inspire so many people that they had continued her work twenty years later was astonishing.

Foundations were usually named for people who had contributed to society for many years and in many cases after the person had died to recognize their life's work. It was unusual that they would name a foundation after someone who had limited involvement.

Though they could understand why that was because it was the Colonel who had initiated the program in the beginning. She had inspired many other young women who had continued her work and built it into a successful program.

They in turned had inspired others to the point it was one of the largest Big Sisters Programs of its kind in the country.

They were also a little surprised that an Athletic Complex would be named after her though. Again, something like naming a complex usually recognized years of contribution to the program. The naming usually took place when the individual retired from active participation.

They had to admit that her athletic contribution exceeded anything they had ever heard of before. Many athletes excelled at one sport, but to excel at three different sports was unbelievable. Her accomplishments were beyond imagination.

That she inspired others to exceed expectation was noteworthy. She had overcome so much, achieved so much more, and inspired so many others by simply knowing them. AJ was right. The Colonel was due special recognition.

They thought a special award ceremony on the fourth was warranted and of course it would make for great press for the military.


	12. Chapter 12

Title: _**Reunion**_

Author: _red rooster dawn_

Pairing: Harm/Mac

Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: With trepidation Mac returns home for her high school reunion.

part twelve

4 July

the White House

Rose Garden

A week later they held a special award presentation in the White House Rose Garden. A very fitting place considering it was where most of the people of Jag and Washington first met or heard of Sarah MacKenzie.

President Bush was there to present the award to Mac. He felt honored to present the award to her. He was a big believer of young women being leaders, successful in their careers, for those who gave back to their community, and finally those that inspired others to do the same.

He had two daughters so he appreciated any woman that could be a good role model for his daughters. In the case of Mac it wasn't just about doing it for a short period of time, but making it a lifetime commitment.

The Admiral had arranged for them to get together after the Ceremony at the Officer's Club at the Naval Academy. Many of the important people of Washington turned up there to offer their congratulations to Mac.

They were able to view the edited version of Mac's reunion showing the tributes to Mac. They were very impressed that a young woman had overcome such a disadvantaged youth to achieve so much in her young life and to inspire so many people,

people who had carried on her work for many years to come. They were beginning to understand why she had become one of the most successful woman and lawyer in the military.

The Admiral asked Mac to say a little something. He had always been proud to know her. She was one of the best officer who had ever served under his command. But even he was surprised at the magnitude of her accomplishments.

"I want to thank everyone for coming here today. I have to admit that I was very surprised to be receiving this award, especially since it dealt with me confronting my past. I guess my memories of that time had been tainted by my relationship with my father.

He was an abusive alcoholic who drove my mother away and ruined my life. I was very unhappy back then. I guess that's kind of hard for most of you to believe after witnessing what I accomplished in high school.

But in reality it was because I didn't want to go home after school. I found every excuse to stay at school for as long as possible. I looked for every opportunity. Sports was one of those opportunities.

I utilized my father's negative attitude towards women as inspiration to excel. He had told my mother and me that we were no good and that we would never succeed. I needed to prove him wrong, that I was indeed special, that I could succeed.

When other coaches espoused their ignorance about who was the best team or athlete, it irritated me. It was my father all over again. How can anyone with any amount of intelligence pick against a team when they were the defending champions.

Every year we were returning almost everyone from our championship teams. We used their arrogance as inspiration. It was why we never lost. You can't expect to be the best unless you've actually beaten the best. Someone can't give you that title you have to earn it for yourself.

I was surprised back then that I was the class Valedictorian. I knew I had done well, but I thought there were a few others who had done better. But it was another opportunity for me to succeed and meet a different group of people.

It's exposed me to another side of life. They were people who weren't gifted in one area, but were special in another. Why was that? Mainly it was because that was where their area of interest was. Great athletes are good because they are interested in sports.

Great scholars are good because of their interest in learning. It opened up a whole new viewpoint of the world for me. Just because you weren't good in one area, it didn't make you a loser. You just needed to find something that you were interested in then you would have the opportunity to be a success.

It was that concept that led me to establishing a Big Sister Program in our school though that wasn't our original intent. We just wanted to help out less fortunate young girls. We wanted to show them that they were capable of being love and the opportunity to succeed at something.

Of all my accomplishments in high school, that was the accomplishment that I'm the most proud of. Not only had I given back to the community, but that I had inspired others to do so too.

I had inspired my friends to help out others. I showed them that they could be successful doing something that they love to do and that it could be something they could continue to do for the rest of their lives.

I'm glad that I had the courage to confront my past the last couple of years. In the end I was able to reconnect with my mother after seventeen years.

I found out that my father had actually been proud of all my accomplishments even though he was incapable of expressing it. He kept a record of my accomplishments in his wallet to share with everyone he knew. He died a few years ago.

When I went back to my reunion I was finally able to see what my life really was like in high school. I was very surprised at the impact I had made. I had forgotten all the wonderful friends that I had during that time.

They had made my life much better when I was so miserable during my high school years. I was able to share many fond memories with them that I had forgotten existed.

I was also quite pleased to see that because of my inspiration to succeed through hard work and no excuses was recognized by the many people who had made my life better. It was nothing that I asked or campaigned for. I'm just sorry I wasn't there at the time.

Thank you all for coming. I hope that after viewing this short film that it inspires you to give back, to seek out opportunities to help others. Do it because it makes you feel good about yourself, but not to seek self glorification in the eyes of the world." orated Mac.

Bobby Laythem was very impressed with Mac's accomplishments at such a young age. She had always admired Mac's career and her accomplishments in the military. It was difficult to succeed in what was considered primary a man's world.

Mac was a shining example of what she hoped to accomplish being a member of congress, that is giving women the opportunity to succeed in the military and life itself. Women needed someone to champion their causes.

"Wow! Mac, I can't believe it. That was so impressive. I always knew that you were good, but I didn't know that you had overcame so much to accomplish what you did at such a young age. You must be very proud." exclaimed an excited Bobby.

"I was more surprised than anything else Bobby. It was a very unhappy time for me back then, all I did was keep busy so I didn't have to go home. That's not something to be proud of." replied Mac a little annoyed.

"So you see Bobby, you aren't the only one who had to overcome difficulties while growing up. The big difference between you and Mac is she didn't stop trying to better herself. She's not satisfied with resting on her laurels.

She doesn't have an agenda. She doesn't force her point of view on everyone else. She doesn't want to champion lost causes. When was the last time you actually volunteered to help people yourself.

You saw that Mac initiated a Big Sister Program in her community when she was only sixteen. While she hasn't been involved with that particular program she has continued to work as a Big Sister in the Washington area since she came here.

What local organization do you belong to? Do you support any back organizations home in Michigan or do you let others do the grunt work?

As you have seen here today Bobby, actions speak louder than words. You have to do more than try and tell people what they should be doing or what causes they should support.

You need to be an active participant yourself. You have to strive to improve yourself all the time. Mac has learned many languages since she joined the Marines. It has helped her do her job in areas in which she has been stationed.

It's easier to get a better understanding of someone's point of view when you understand the nuances of their languages instead of maybe getting a wrong interpretation from a translation. She has also bettered herself by getting a law degree and becoming one of the best lawyers in the military.

You have a law degree, but when was the last time you actually practice law? Have you ever been inside a courtroom or did you just use it as a jumping off point to become a politician?" asked Harm questioning whether or not Bobbie actually practiced what she preached.

"Don't be so hard on her Harm, some people are needed to make others aware of the problems in today society even when they don't exist. She doesn't understand personal responsibility and what it means to succeed on your own merits.

She rather have it given to her because she feels she is owed something because someone else in her life didn't get what they wanted because they lack the education or skills necessary to obtain them.

It's unfortunate that she doesn't understand that people in this country are given every opportunity to succeed. But it's up to them to take advantage of that opportunity. It's not the same in many of the countries that we have visited.

They're lucky to have a roof over their head, food in their bellies, and clothes on their back. Many of them don't have the opportunity go to school. They can't decide who to love and marry. They don't have a choice of what jobs they want to perform.

They have to live in the world they are born into. There is no upward mobility in class or lifestyle.

I took advantage of the opportunities that were offered to me in high school. I wanted to succeed because I knew it was my way out of the life I grew up in. I had watch my father put down my mother for years.

He told her how useless she was even though she was a great mother and a good wife who kept a good house. That's why I made the effort in school to tell all my teammates that only they knew how good they were.

They shouldn't listen to people who didn't believe in them or put them down. It was up to them to work hard and prove others that they were wrong and to succeed." added Mac.

Bobbie felt the stings from their comments. Not many people were this honest with her, at least not people she respected. She knew that their criticism was well intended and warranted. Much of what they had was true.

She had accomplished a lot as a young woman. She was very proud of that and rightly so, but she had taken a rest after attaining her law degree. She really hadn't really done anything thereafter to improve herself.

She had tried being a lawyer and found that it was very hard work and she didn't like being in the courtroom trying cases. She had taken the easy way out and become a politician.

While some people might believe that being a politician was easy work, it really wasn't. You had to take the time to learn about many different topics that you weren't interested in. You had to fight for what you did believe in, but also you had to learn to compromise.

There were many people who would help you attain what you want as long as you help the attain theirs which was difficult sometimes when what they wanted you didn't believe in. That was the ugly side of politics.

"I'm sorry that you feel that way Mac. I thought this day was about you and not about me. I have always considered you an inspiration. I have always tried to gain more opportunities for women especially in the military.

I understand my methods of attaining those opportunities may not always be appreciated by everyone, but I found out a long time ago that the squeaky wheel always gets noticed.

That's very important when so many people in congress have so much more seniority than I have. If you let them, they will only look at what is important to them. They won't look at what you want unless you let them know what it is.

I also found out that you can't cave into what they want. You have to make them earn your support. You have to get them to compromise. You will support their bill if they get yours passed.

But you are right Mac. I should get more actively involved in the causes that I profess to support. I should make the time. I shouldn't expect everyone else to something that I myself won't do.

Again Mac, I'm here to support you and your accomplishments. I thought it was something special to see a community honor you not once, but twice for the inspiration that you had instilled in so many.

The fact you did it at such a young age is even more amazing and special. And like I have said before, you have been my inspiration since the day I met you. This is your day Mac, enjoy all the attention that you richly deserve." replied Bobby who then left before Mac could say anything.

"We're going to have apologize to her and make it up to her Harm." moaned Mac.

"You're right of course. It is amazing though that you can inspire women of all ages. I never thought Bobby thought of you in that manner. I knew she respected you and even admired you, but I never would have thought that she was inspired by you." replied Harm.

"Let's not dwell on her. Let's just enjoy the moment." smiled Mac as she stretch up on her toes to share a kiss with Harm.

**__**

The End


End file.
